The invention relates to a rotatable hydraulic grapple suitable for use in retrieving, lifting, transporting, and unloading materials of various shapes, sizes, and compositions. Various forms of hydraulic grapples exist in the prior art. These prior art designs have certain limiting attributes which this invention overcomes. These limitations include: exposed hydraulic lines or hoses which are susceptible to tearing and other damage because of the environment in which grapples are used; exposed and open cavities among and between the various structural parts of the grapple which tend to get clogged with material and debris thereby inhibiting the effective performance of the grapple; non-rotatable grapples which restrict the grapple user from choosing more preferable and useful orientations of the grapple during its use. The existence of external hoses and lines also restricts the rotatable movement even of those grapples which are rotatable because the distance of rotation is restricted by the length of the lines.
An object of the present invention is to overcome these limitations.